Seeing the man before him, clothed in a luxurious robe and surrounded by bubbles, erupt in anger, the man in the black suit, who had been bowing humbly, suddenly fell to his knees with a loud thud.
"Please calm your anger, my lord!" He pleaded loudly.
"Calm my anger?!" The imposing man paused, glaring at the man kneeling before him. Suddenly, he swung his cane and struck the man's face.
Smack!
Blood splattered. The head of the man in the black suit was split open, yet he didn't even flinch. Still kneeling there, he loudly declared:
"Please calm your anger, my lord! I, for the sake of the Ilinulay Family, will cleanse us of this disgrace!"
The imposing man took a deep breath, his rage seeming to subside.
Hearing the man's words, he let out a short laugh.
"Runta, you dog, you're doing a fine job of it."
"If I've chosen to be your dog, my lord, then I will be the most loyal and the most ferocious one!" Runta remained prostrate on the ground, responding calmly.
"Very good."
The imposing man laughed, then paused before continuing:
"Then go, cleanse this disgrace. Bring back Ilinulay Palace's Yilu."
"Yes, my lord!"
"As for those criminals, destroy them while you're at it. Consider it a gift for those useless Marines."
The man waved his hand.
"Understood."
Still kneeling, the man in the black suit shuffled backward a few steps to take his leave.
"Oh, and Runta…"
The man's voice grew deep.
"If you fail to cleanse the shame brought upon the Ilinulay Family, then I will be the one to cleanse you."
Runta trembled slightly, then quickly composed himself and kowtowed in utter submission.
"Runta understands."
"The Celestial Dragons have no need for useless dogs. Now get lost!"
Runta remained kneeling as he backed out through the door. Only once outside did he slowly rise to his feet and stride away quickly.
As he lifted his head, he revealed a cruel, sinister face marred by a cross-shaped scar. His frame was somewhat thin, but it concealed a violent, explosive strength.
All the way out of the Celestial Dragons' palace, Runta's expression remained calm.
Despite the humiliation and threats he had just suffered, not a trace of resentment or dissatisfaction lingered in his heart.
Ever since he had chosen to abandon his dignity and everything else, he had thrown himself fully into darkness.
"If I've already lost my pride, then why not go all the way, and give up everything?"
He had become a dog, and chosen the noblest master in the world.
Having cast away his dignity, Runta now handled matters with precision and order.
"Keep eyes on the target. Maintain personal alertness."
"Combat team, start preparations. We move in one day. I'm going along this time."
"Remember, protect Master Yilu. That is your primary objective."
Issuing a stream of rapid, clear orders, Runta's eyes grew cold, like a lake just before freezing.
Alabasta.
Early the next morning, Rojen and the others were already up.
Ding dang!
The crisp sound of a bell rang out as two camel-drawn wagons pulled up in front of the inn.
"Heh heh, Captain, I hired two camel carts. We're heading to Alubarna, gotta cross the desert. Without these, it'd be real tough to get there."
Rojen smiled and was just about to speak when Jason cut him off.
"But, I'm broke. You pay. Ha ha!"
Saying that, he jumped straight into one of the wagons.
Black lines appeared on Rojen's face as he resisted the urge to respond. Instead, he helped Rouge and Lordling onto the camel cart.
After that, the group set off.
The camel carts didn't move very fast through the city, and it took over an hour before they passed through and arrived at a vast, barren desert.
"This is really spectacular, a desert this huge."
Jason pulled open the cart's curtain and exclaimed in awe.
"Heh, that's one of Alabasta's trademarks, deserts and oases together, it has a very unique charm."
The middle-aged man driving the camel smiled as he spoke.
"Uncle, how long does it take to cross this desert by camel?"
Rojen asked curiously.
Rouge's due date was getting closer, and they didn't have much time to spare.
"If nothing unexpected happens, we should reach Alubarna in two days."
The driver replied.
"Two days, huh…"
Rojen nodded. That timeline was acceptable.
The camel carts slowly made their way through the desert. Staring at the endless open sands for too long quickly became boring. Pulling the curtain shut, Rojen half-lay inside the cart, planning to take a nap.
Jason, however, was still full of energy, looking around in every direction.
After seeing so much seawater, the sight of the desert actually felt somewhat refreshing.
The morning passed quickly. By noon, they stopped for a break to eat some dry rations and drink water. After that, the camel carts started moving again.
About three hours later, with Rojen still dozing lightly, he suddenly heard the middle-aged driver outside yell out, "Whoa!" and the camel cart came to a stop.
"What's going on?"
Before Rojen could even open his eyes, Jason had already yanked open the curtain.
"We came across people stranded in the desert,"
The driver said with a sigh, pointing ahead.
Jason followed his gaze and saw a row of corpses sprawled messily in the sand. Some were bloodstained, others half-covered by wind-blown sand. If they remained undiscovered much longer, it was only a matter of time before they were completely buried by the desert.
"They probably got caught in a fight, or maybe attacked by wild beasts," Jason said.
"Nope, looks like desert bandits got to them," the driver said as he took a puff from his dry tobacco pipe, his eyes showing little fear.
"Huh? There's still someone alive!"
Jason nodded, but then noticed one of the 'corpses' in the distance twitch.
He was about to jump off the cart when the middle-aged driver quickly reached out and grabbed his hand, shaking his head.
"Rescuing stranded folks in the desert isn't considered a good omen."
Jason froze.
"There's a legend," the driver explained, "that gods reside in the desert. The dead and those who fall victim to misfortune are said to have angered those gods. If you save them without permission, you'll offend the gods and bring disaster upon yourself."
"There's really a saying like that?" Jason asked in confusion.
Inside the cart, Rojen heard this and simply shook his head with a slight smile, then poked his head out.
Following Jason's line of sight, he immediately spotted the person who was still alive.
Lying face-down in the sand, the figure was bloodstained and frail-looking, likely young. His right hand was clenched tightly around something, and it was that hand's trembling that revealed he was still alive.
"Jason, get that guy."
With just that command, Jason replied, "Aye!" and jumped off the cart right away.
The middle-aged driver continued trying to stop them, but the two ignored him completely.
"Hey, kid, you still alive? If you are, make a sound!"
Jason crouched down and shouted at the boy.
"Creak!"
The boy, still clinging to life, actually made a squeaking sound in response.
(End Of This Chapter)
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